Solving a problem

It has been a while since I selected a Patents just because of the humorous side it presents. Today, I will remedy that and talk about a patent that would appear to solve exactly the opposite problem that most people have. It is related to the use of chopsticks. While I am fairly dexterous at using them these days, there was a time when the food would be cold before I had managed to eat my fill.To quote a patent I found (US 4809435 – Eating Utensil, published March 7, 1989) “It is a custom in the United States and elsewhere to eat Oriental foods, such as Chinese and Japanese foods, with utensils native to that part of the world, known as chopsticks. Chopsticks are generally a matching pair of rods several inches long. Unlike Western-style utensils, such as the spoon and fork, chopsticks must be manipulated carefully by the user with one hand to grasp and carry food to the user’s mouth. To accomplish this task, the user must be able to both hold the chopsticks firmly … [Read more...] about Solving A Problem In Reverse

On July 21, 1969, Buzz Aldrin climbed gingerly out of Eagle, Apollo 11’s lunar module, and joined Neil Armstrong on the Sea of Tranquility. Looking up, he said, “Beautiful, beautiful, magnificent desolation.” They were alone; but their presence on the moon’s silent, gray surface was the culmination of a convulsive collective effort. Eight years before, President John F. Kennedy had asked the United States Congress to “commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth.” His challenge disturbed the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s original plan for a stepped, multi-generational strategy: Wernher von Braun, NASA’s chief of rocketry, had thought the agency would first send men into Earth’s orbit, then build a space station, then fly to the moon, then build a lunar colony. A century hence, perhaps, humans would travel to Mars. … [Read more...] about Why We Can’t Solve Big Problems

Amazon has added a screen to the latest iteration of its Echo smart speaker—a move that acknowledges some of the limitations of voice-only smart devices and will allow users to discover content more easily. The new $230 Echo Show is far larger than the smaller speakers that have gone before it, because it features a seven-inch touch screen positioned above its speaker panel. The concept is pretty simple: the voice assistant Alexa will now show you how it’s responding to questions, rather than just telling. That means it will, say, show you the weather forecasts for the coming week, display a recipe, or offer up related music suggestions. It solves a problem that others have already pointed out. Earlier this year, Andrew Ng, who was then chief scientist at Baidu, explained to MIT Technology Review that while speech input is three times quicker than typing on mobile devices, “the fastest way for a machine to get information to you is via a screen.” … [Read more...] about Amazon’s Touch-Screen Smart Speaker Solves a Big Problem with AI Assistants

A heavy climber and light belayer can make for a deadly combination — in the event of a fall, a heavier climber risks decking while the lighter belayer could be thrown into the wall or yanked up into the first bolt, resulting in possible injury. Climbing equipment company Edelrid has a devised a clever solution to the problem with the Ohm, a device that adds friction to the first clipping point in a rope system.Traditionally to solve the problem of weight differences between climbers, a load is added to the belayer to make them “heavier.” Alternatively, the belayer can be anchored in to a solid object, such as a tree or a boulder. Sandbags and other kinds of anchors are utilized in gyms, at the crag, and climbing destinations around the world. This common issue has never been addressed from the other side of the problem — the climber’s side — until now. An “Ohm” is a unit of measurement for … [Read more...] about The Edelrid Ohm solves the problem of weight difference between climbers

Today on DT Daily: a biometric smart wallet, get easy As in math with your smartphone, and will a real hoverboard be ready for Back to the Future’s most famous date?Apple’s Apple Pay system is big news these days, but if you’re not quite ready to join the touch-to-pay future, well, we’ve got a wallet for you that’s almost as high tech.Ironically called the “iWallet,” the hard-shell device features a fingerprint reader and is available in either aluminum or carbon fiber. After setup, just glide your finger over the reader to open it. Oh, and if you leave it at the bar and walk away, your smartphone will let you know. Conversely, the wallet can tell you if you forget to grab your smartphone after that third drink.The iWallet costs about $600 depending on options, and we strongly suggest George Costanza look into getting one as soon as possible.Do you fondly remember all those math tests from school days gone by? Yeah, we don’t either. But … [Read more...] about DT Daily: Smart iWallet, app solves math problems, real hoverboard

Researchers at the University of Hamburg in Germany have, for the first time, written and deleted data on single hypothetical particles called "skyrmions."Skyrmions have been reported to exist in thin magnetic films and superconductors, among other things, but this has not been conclusively proven.Their use could solve the problem of coping with the increasing demands for storage on electronic devices, which are being made ever smaller. For example, wearable devices are expected to constitute the next wave of mobile products.However, translating the research into the real world might take a lot of work."I like the fact that they're talking about hypothetical things," Jim McGregor, principal analyst at Tirias Research, told TechNewsWorld. "It sounds like a cool experiment but that's it. You'd have to control all external environmental factors and that would make it difficult to deal with." A skyrmion consists of a quantum superposition of baryons and resonance states. Let's see what … [Read more...] about Researchers Solve Knotty Problem in Pursuit of Data Storage Breakthrough

Data Analysis Millions upon millions of medical records and test results; countless DNA sequences; hard drives stuffed with images of all kinds — pictures of cells, scans of body parts; it's all part of the deluge of information often known as "big data," an ever-growing stockpile of digital material that scientists hope will reveal insights about biology and lead to improvements in medical care.UCLA intends to position itself at the center of the effort.The school's new Institute for Quantitative and Computational Biosciences will bring together researchers and computer experts from the medical school and other departments throughout the UCLA campus to help make sense of the data, university leaders said.Analyzing big data might help scientists understand how genes interact with the environment to promote good health or cause disease, and provide a clearer understanding of which medical treatments work best for particular populations, or in particular circumstances."It's … [Read more...] about Institute for Quantitative and Computational Biosciences will Integrate Big Data to Solve Biomedical Problems

Mathematics/Statistics As a mathematician, I suppose I should subscribe to the “no such thing as bad publicity” theory, except that problems of this ilk a) usually aren’t that difficult once you get the trick, b) sometimes aren’t even math problems and c) fuel the defeatist “I’m not good at math” fire that pervades American culture. The inability to solve such a problem quickly is certainly not indicative of a person’s overall math skill, nor should it prompt a crisis of confidence about the state of American math aptitude.When is Cheryl’s birthday?In April, the internet erupted with shock that 10-year-olds in Singapore were asked to answer the following question on an exam.The logic puzzle from the Singapore and Asian Math Olympiads.Except that it wasn’t for elementary school students at all; rather it appeared on an Asian Olympiad exam designed for mathematically talented high school students. What’s more, this … [Read more...] about Don’t Freak if you Can’t Solve a Math Problem that’s Gone Viral

Apple may be facing another design issue with the iPhone 4 -- or not.Apple engineers are trying to solve a potentially big problem, according to GDGT's Ryan Block.The use of slip-on cases made for the iPhone 4 can cause scratches on its glass back panel that eventually could lead to cracks and even shattering, Block reported, based on information he received from sources inside and outside of the company.Particles of debris can get caught between the rear of the phone and the case, causing the scratches that could eventually fracture the glass, he explained.This account has not been confirmed by Apple, which did not return MacNewsWorld's call seeking comment for this story.There apparently have been no complaints about this scenario ever having occurred -- at least none that have been made public."I have 30,000 people that listen to my show -- and believe me, they will call in about the littlest issue," Rob Walch, host of Today in iPhone, told MacNewsWorld. "No one has ever mentioned … [Read more...] about Glassgate Is a Problem for Apple, However You Cut It

Song Sift, an application by Inedible Software, is available for 99 US cents at the App Store.It's been about a decade since the first practical MP3 players started popping up, and 10 years is plenty of time to collect a positively bloated library of digital music.Perhaps you got in at the ground floor with Napster in '99 and loaded up on free tunes before the music industry (and, just maybe, your own conscience) decided to do something about it. Maybe you remain a proud pirate, Bay or no Bay. Or perhaps one lonely weekend in 2006 you went to a quiet, dark place and set about ripping every single CD, cassette, record album and 8-track tape you've ever owned. However you get it, it's now possible to carry it all on the hard drive of a small laptop.But for a lot of sonic pack rats, even the best iPod touch out there still doesn't offer enough space to cram in your full library. It currently maxes out at 64 GB, and that's big, but it's not … [Read more...] about APP REVIEW Song Sift Solves a Problem for Picky Podsters